Broadband Corner

This is about using the extraordinary capabilities of optical fibre as a transmission medium to transfer huge amounts of data speedily with very little interference. The transmission rate is higher than traditional copper-based broadband. Theoretically, optical fibre technology can deliver over 10 Gigabytes of bandwidth. Home users are generally able to access network specifications of up to 10 Gigabyte, depending on network rollout, for a faster internet experience.

Fibre optic broadband technology can be generally called FTTX, depending where the fibre terminates at, which can be:

• FTTC – Fibre-to-the-Curb
• FTTP – Fibre-to-the-Premises
• FTTB – Fibre-to-the-Building
• FTTH – Fibre-to-the-Home
• FTTR – Fibre-to-the-Room

Fibre-to-the-Home Broadband is an end-to-end fibre that runs from a telecommunications exchange, through underground cable ducting to a building main telecommunications and broadcasting equipment (TBE) room, and local telephone duct room, all the way to the first designated landing broadband socket in a customer home.

Fibre optic Internet connectivity can provide 100M or above bandwidth specification at equal upstream and downstream specification, without much limitation on distances due to its low loss characteristic. It is suitable for high-speed data transmission applications such as Internet TV with full high definition quality with surround sound, streaming full HD videos, uploading/downloading large files, or supporting cloud devices.

As optical fibre transmits via light, the signal is not weakened easily and avoids electromagnetic interference. The signal is therefore very stable, ensuring high-quality broadband Internet access suitable for real-time high-definition multimedia services.

Note:
Bandwidth Specification refers to network specifications of the subscribed Services for the broadband line connected from the modem at your Premises to the first piece of network equipment or central office of the NETVIGATOR network. For Fibre-to-the-home Plans, bandwidth specifications of 100M, 200M, 300M, 500M, 1000M and 2500M correspond to a maximum upstream and downstream bandwidth of 100Mbps / 200Mbps / 300Mbps / 500Mbps / 1000Mbps / 2.5Gps respectively. For bandwidth specification of 10G, maximum downstream bandwidth is 10Gbps and maximum upstream bandwidth is 10Gbps (the maximum upstream bandwidth is only applicable to new subscription of the service by consumer customers from October 5, 2020 onwards). The actual speed you experience using the Service will be less than the network specifications and affected by your device, technology, network and software used, network configuration and coverage, usage levels, international bandwidth and extraneous factors.

Many wireless routers are available on the market, but speed performance varies even if they all claimed to be complied with a particular wireless standard. Besides our peace-of-mind NETVIGATOR Home Wireless services, there are other wireless routers for your consideration if you decide to get one by yourself.

Factors affecting wireless Internet access speeds and actual fibre optic broadband speeds are similar. However, when connected to a wireless network (Wi-Fi), Internet connection speeds may be influenced by the following two additional factors:

1. Other wireless devices and your computer occupying the same area. If a wireless network operating frequency is similar to the frequency of another device (eg a microwave oven or wireless telephone), you may suffer interference or the wireless network connection could be blocked. Get a better connection by turning off other wireless devices to avoid interference.
2. The distance of a wireless access point or router's location in relation to the computer, and physical obstacles could possibly affect network connection quality. Improve your connectivity speed by getting as close to the access point/router as possible, and make sure no physical obstacles, such as a wall, come between the access point/router and computer.

Many users believe their broadband service is slower than advertised because they misunderstand the units of broadband speed. So let's see how this is calculated:

Theoretically, B represents "Byte" and b represents "bit" in transmission unit. Both have different definitions (see conversion table below):

1 Byte = 8 bits
1 Kb = 1024 bits
1 KB = 1024 bytes (= 8192 bits)
1 Mb = 1024 kb
1 MB = 1024 KB (= 8192 kb)

Note that the advertised broadband services "bandwidth" normally refers to the Network Specification. There are transmission overheads for the Ethernet protocols, as well as other factors affecting the actual data throughput.

Actual Internet access speed is affected by multiple factors, so is less than network specifications might suggest. Common influencing factors are:

Poor computer performance is a common reason for slow speeds. You can get more details on recommended computer configuration by referring to System requirements

When multiple connected computers or devices – such as a mobile phone and wireless router – connect simultaneously to the same network, the result of having to share the available bandwidth, Internet access speed could be reduced.

Wireless router specification is extremely important in this regard. If a router that does not support high speed is connected, Internet access speed will be correspondingly reduced. For example, if you are using 10G fibre optic broadband service and your wireless router only supports up to 1000Mbps, the highest possible Internet access speed will only reach up to about 1000Mbps.

Wireless connection throughput is subject to conditions such as the local radio environment, number of devices sharing the same wireless network, range of the wireless coverage, interferences, physical obstacles and capability of receiving end. As a result, actual wireless connection speed will be less than the maximum throughput.

Many users enjoy internet access via wireless routers. However, with many options of wireless routers available in the market, you may find it useful to refer to overview and features of Home Wireless Service for details and specifications of some models we recommend and choose the suitable one for your broadband.

Each website is served by a server connected to the network, and network bandwidth is distributed according to a website's usage. So when the number of users is low, your connection speed will be faster. In contrast, when the number of simultaneous users is high, your linking network server will be congested, causing the connection speed to drop, especially for an overseas network server and the amount of users.

Internet connection speeds differ and depend on what other services are being used at the same time – e.g. web browsing, internet television and so on. Bandwidth demanding applications such as file sharing, video conferencing, and watching online movies, and software used will also influence internet access speeds, as they consume bandwidth, as well as processing power of your computer.

1. Check your computer system configuration. Please refer to recommended system requirement.
2. Ensure the computer is the sole active device on your office or home network. Turn off other computers, IPTV set-top-boxes, NAS and so on.
3. Close any other applications and any application running in the background.
4. Connect the computer directly to your modem with CAT5e Ethernet cable, bypassing any wired or wireless router.
5. Update the LAN card driver, web browser and programmes for viewing multimedia and streaming video and audio, such as Flash Player to the latest versions.

We recommend the www.myspeedmeter.net speed test website. If you have any inquiries on the speed test platform, please contact the website administrator directly.

Get the best out of NETVIGATOR's ultra fast and stable home broadband service by adopting the following recommended PC configuration.

VLAN stands for virtual local area network and is a technology by which multiple virtual circuits are created on a physical network for the logical grouping of different devices. Traffic passes through each VLAN circuit in a totally independent manner. Traffic segregation means congestion on one circuit is avoided when huge volumes of data pass through other virtual circuits. VLAN improves protection of devices and grants superior control over network resources by separating different applications.

VLAN has been serving commercial broadband deployments for quite some time and delivers network management and security advantages. NETVIGATOR's Multi-Use Broadband Service is based on VLAN technology, which has improved the overall high-speed broadband user experience.

with VLAN

without VLAN

VLANs' network segmentation technology creates a collection of isolated circuits. When properly configured, VLAN segmentation helps to thwart attacks on a system.

Meanwhile, inter-VLAN communication requires traffic routing by using an operator's network equipment, which is usually protected by a firewall or access-list control. VLAN segregation therefore fends off computer viruses and malware to enhance network security.

VLAN

without VLAN

VLANs' network segmentation technology creates a collection of isolated circuits, whereby each VLAN circuit operates individually, and transfer of data is not is allowed between VLANs. This approach optimizes network performance and ensures users enjoy smooth-running and low-latency network when playing online games or making voice and video calls.

A network behaves differently according to whether a VLAN is enabled or not. These differing characteristics suit the needs of disparate user groups and applications.

The VLAN setting is disabled by default for 2x1000M Multi-Use Plan, but enabled for 4x1000M Multi-Use Plan. Users can contact our Customer Service specialists to request VLAN setting changes whenever needed.